The Properties of Magnets
by actionoverthought
Summary: Meet Lily, James, Severus, Sirius, Remus, and Peter in their Hogwart's years. As the wizarding world descends into war, loyalties, love, revenge, and honor motivate these young witches and wizards to grow up much faster than they otherwise would. While the entire world enters war, two men focus on the fight over the affection of one woman.
1. Prologue: It's a Date

Chapter One: It's a Date

* * *

"It's our final year," Ivy said, dipping a pumpkin pasty into a bowl of whipped cream. "We should focus on enjoying ourselves in the time we have left."

Alice and Lily shared looks.

"Did you not read the same article we just did?" Lily centered the Daily Prophet paper in front of Ivy, shoving her plate to the side. "More wizard disappearances, the majority of students have lost one or both of their parents to deatheater attacks. We're in the middle of a war, Ivy; we need to do something to help out. We can't spend all our time slacking off or having fun, we have to fight."

"You heard Dumbledore last term," Ivy lowered her voice so that the couple of third years sitting next to them at the Gryffindor table wouldn't overhear. "He said we were too young to join the resistance movement."

"But now we're of age," Lily argued. "We should ask again."

"Fine," Ivy said wearily. "When? After dinner? Should we drop out of school tonight?"

She raised her eyebrows at Alice, as if to say, 'why do we put up with this?' Alice stared back, biting her lip.

"Michael did it! Avery did it! Lots of students have dropped out of Hogwarts to fight!" Lily said, pulling more food onto her plate. "But I think we would serve the movement better by staying at school and recruiting more students, maybe from other houses, raise awareness while we're still here."

"You have other responsibilities here," Ivy glanced along the length of the table. "You're head girl. You're responsible for the students in Gryfindor house. In fact, you and James are going to be working together this year. Are you going to leave him to do all the work alone?"

"That's another thing," Lily started, but Ivy cut her off with a groan.

"I don't want to hear another speech about James Potter being irresponsible. I get it. You think he's an arrogant sexist womanizer who doesn't deserve the honor of being a head boy. But, Dumbledore made the decision. We're going to have to live with it."

Ivy finished her dessert and chugged her goblet of water as if it contained a stronger brew.

"Look Lily, you're my best friend and I'll support whatever decision you make, but please try to see yourself as a person who has more value than as a martyr. You'd serve the movement better if you weren't so keen on going out there and getting yourself killed you know. Sirius says that your stunt last term didn't only put yourself at risk, but it also endangered Alice and..."

"I learned from that," Lily interrupted, flushing. "Everyone makes mistakes."

"But you still have that mentality. Who do you think you'll help if you get yourself killed going off on your own and fighting singlehandedly?" Ivy stood up. "I'm going back to the common room. Alice, are you coming?"

Alice nodded, glanced pityingly at Lily, stood up, and followed Ivy out of the dining hall, leaving Lily alone at the table.

"She's right," James said, scooting down the table so he was sitting directly across from her.

Lily had seen him there before, but she had pretended she hadn't. She had looked right past him and avoided looking at him, even in her peripheral. She knew this was a bit immature for a seventeen-year-old, but she didn't like the feeling she got when they made eye contact.

There was also the fact that last year he had saved her life, and she felt uncomfortable with the position this put her in. Gone were the days when she could ignore him coldly or treat him badly. Worse, she still felt that mixture of physical attraction and intense dislike of his character that made her actions confused. It felt better to avoid him altogether. That way, she didn't have to play nice or talk. Instead, she could forget that she owed him, or even that he existed.

However, they now had a professional relationship which involved coordinating activities (aka talking) and living next to each other in the head student dorm-rooms. He had made it abundantly clear while they were on the Hogwarts Express that he would be exploiting their professional relationship for personal purposes. For instance, he wouldn't let her leave the head boy/girl compartment to check on the halls, and instead blocked the doorway with his body as he forced her to engage in polite conversation. Then, he and Sirius sat with her, Ivy, and Alice in their carriage to Hogwarts, leaving behind Remus and Peter. He had made a point of sitting next to her and placing his arm casually behind her on the carriage walls. Then, Sirius and James had sat on either side of her in the dining hall during sorting, blocking her from sitting with Ivy and Alice.

"Eavesdropping. Really, Potter?" She asked stiffly, considering abandoning her food and walking off.

"I don't agree with everything she said, though," James continued as if he hadn't heard her. "Sirius and I don't blame you for what happened last term. You were tricked by that greasy, awful git."

Lily flushed again, feeling tears pricking her eyelids at the thought of the man he called a "greasy, awful git." That man had been her best friend once and she had really trusted him. Last term, he had lured her into the Forbidden Forest and his gang of recently graduated ex-Slytherin friends had actually tried to kill her. They hadn't even been fooling around. They wanted to kill her because she was a muggle-born witch, and Severus had been the one that asked her to go there. He had written her a very sweet letter, containing a heart-felt apology about the way he had treated her during sixth year, and promised that if they met in their 'secret spot,' he would make it up to her. When she arrived in their 'secret spot,' he wasn't there. His friends had all been there though, and Lily hadn't been able to ward them off alone.

"I don't want to talk about that," Lily said, sincerely no longer hungry.

She pushed her plate of food away.

"I'm sorry he did that to you," James said, leaning across the table with a somewhat sad expression. "If he had been there, I would have made him regret it, but the cowardly git…"

"Potter, please," Lily covered her eyes with trembling hands. "I really don't want to talk about that, okay? I get it. I owe you."

"Call me James," said James. "I hate it when you call me Potter. You make it sound like an insult. And I'm not making a point about you owing me. I don't even care about that."

Lily remembered James's expression when he entered the woods running, leading Sirius, Remus, Ivy, Alice, and Peter with his wand held out. He had looked beyond angry, he looked scared.

"I know. I'm sorry." Lily lowered her hands. "I'm grateful that you were there, otherwise I certainly would have been killed. I'm not too proud to admit that I couldn't handle them on my own. I just, I wish I could forget that it happened. Please don't bring it up anymore. If I can do something to repay my debt, I will, but if not, please don't bring it up."

James gave her an appraising look, shifting the newspaper out from under his elbows and folding it as he thought.

"You'd do anything to repay your debt?" He cocked his head and leaned back in the chair.

Lily knew what was coming, but she felt she didn't have the right to refuse.

"Yes," she said, gritting her teeth under pursed lips.

"Go out with me to Hogsmeade next weekend," James said, looking unpredictably grim about it. "Let's go on a date."

He stared at her with raised eyebrows, as if daring her to turn him down. She knew she couldn't, though he certainly expected she would.

"Alright," she said.

And, before he could comment, she stood up and left.


	2. Chapter One: 1969

_1969: 9 years old at the Minister's Inauguration_

* * *

(Sirius Black)

_"Women are aristocrats, and it is always the mother who makes us feel that we belong to the better sort." -John Lancaster Spalding_

"Come on boys, we have to get to the dinner." Walburga Black watched her two boys from the gaping doorway. Her husband, Orion Black, had been invited to bring his family to a Minister of magic coronation. The previous Minister, Nobby Leach, had been a very progressive wizarding leader. This is why Walburga was happy to see him out of office. He had not fulfilled his duty to support a pure-blood community in an increasingly muggle world. Luckily, the wizard Orion campaigned for had been elected to office.

Ernesto Villar, a high-ranking pure-blood from Spain, had dazzled England's wizarding community with his promise to maintain order and security without the high cost of too many alterations in society. After being chosen to replace Leach, he had promised to throw a coronation dinner for all of his supporters. Her family had been preparing all day for this dinner, Orion had been preparing all year.

Walburga reflected idly on her husband's ability to make an impression with the right people. Tonight he was dressed in black silk robes with a fringe of gold around the sleeves. The taste level was perfection. He would neither outshine the new minister, nor misrepresent the wealth of his family.

Hopefully her dress robes and Orion's would not juxtapose. Unlike her husband, she preferred to dress maturely. Orion could afford to dress like a dashing young wizard; she had to uphold the reputation of sophistication with age. A long time ago, when she had attended the coronation of Angela Spavin with her fiancée—now husband—she had worn a low cut and shimmery gown designed to showcase both her body and evolution as a woman. She had neither the liberty nor the body to wear such a beautiful piece today.

"Mother," her younger, darling, son tugged on the fabric around her thigh, "Will we see Bella and Cissy at the corn-in-ation?"

"Coronation," she corrected sharply, softening when she saw him worry around the eyes, "Yes, your cousins will be sitting at our table."

"What about Andromeda?" Her older son asked.

Walburga surveyed her son for a moment; she was wondering what had gone wrong. He was as handsome as his father and brother, and as intelligent, but his attitude was unfortunate. Just last weekend she had been explaining to her close friend and cousin, Araminta Meliflua, how badly her nine-year-old son had turned out. Araminta had touched her shoulder consolingly, "He has all the right ingredients to make you a proud mother. You won't know if he is doomed to fail until he reaches Hogwarts. He is a Black, after all, so give him more time."

Sirius stood about four and a half feet high with cropped short hair. One of the house-elves had taught him to cut it on his own with scissors and he had taken advantage of that knowledge. Walburga preferred her son to have longer locks to show off the thick brown hair that all the Black's were notorious for. It was as if he had intentionally sabotaged her by trimming it unfashionably short.

A startlingly picture of sober civility, he had picked out his shabbiest set of robes and stood, calmly before her, asking if he would see his most troublesome cousin.

"Andromeda has been grounded by her parents for disobedience." Besides all her childish household pranks, Andromeda had committed the greatest of all possible errors and had been admitted into Gryffindor instead of Slytherin like her dutiful sisters. She was sort of a family pariah; disregarded by her own dear mother and father. "She will not be attending the coronation."

"Then I don't want to go," Sirius said.

"No! Come, Sirius, please?" Regulus pleaded. Her youngest son had a deep affection for his brother that wasn't affected by his deviant behavior.

"It is just a stupid formality. Mother wants us to come so she can show off her two well behaved sons. As I am not well behaved, I should stay home. Both mother and I will benefit from that decision." Sirius slipped his hands into his pockets, cocking his eyebrows at her.

Walburga scowled, turning to locate her husband. "Orion, your son suggests that we leave him at home."

"Unacceptable. I want both my sons to meet and converse with the minister. Villar might want to hire them someday for a position in the ministry," Orion appeared behind her, placing a firm hand on her lower back. She sank into his weight, safe in the feeling that he was here to control the situation. Despite this trend of disrespect, Sirius seemed to bear the authority of his father. He at least acknowledged the superiority of Orion's position. "You will come, and you will behave like the well-bred young wizard you are, do you understand me?"

"Yes, father," Sirius was sullen.

Walburga glanced up in time to see Orion giving their oldest son a disdainful once over, "We are going to be late, because Sirius is going to have to change into something more appropriate." As Sirius began to move rigidly toward the stairs Orion cleared his throat, "Hold still a moment boy, I am not through with you." He unsheathed his wand and flicked it.

Sirius's head streamed glossy brown in a waterfall of hair that hung past his ears. He fingered it in horror, apparently recognizing himself thwarted. Walburga smiled; she did not need to show off his attitude tonight, just his Black looks.

* * *

(James Potter)

Approximately fourteen and 1/5 kilometers away from The Black Residence on Grimmauld place, the Coronation was beginning and the Potters had taken their seat at the table. James Sr. Potter and his wife, Rebecca Potter, had supported the new minister with a great sum of money during the campaign. They had subsequently been placed at a table towards the middle of the stage. Normally the Potters would not be involved in politics, but it had been a strange year for the bank and it was in James Sr.'s best interest to support the candidate who was least likely to revolutionize the entire banking system.

Their only son, James, had dressed himself up as if he were twice his age. Rebecca glanced over at him with pride. In March, on his birthday, James had been given a multitude of presents. He evidently favored a gold watch that his Grandfather had passed down to him. Tonight, it peeked out of the sleeves of his robes, glittering obstinately in the flickering torch light.

"You look so handsome," she informed him, "You must be the handsomest boy in the whole room."

Her son smiled at her, "You have to say that."

"No!" Rebecca crossed her heart, "I'm obligated to say that to your father. Calling you handsome is a statement of fact." She leaned forward and kissed him on both baby-soft cheeks.

"Hey, where is my love? I'm the one that scored us these great seats," James Sr. said, "All he did was show up here with us."

"I suppose you do get some credit," Rebecca mused, "You did help raise this handsome and intelligent boy."

"'Help raise' you say! I raised him almost entirely on my own. Who taught him to do arithmetic and summoning spells," James Sr. stopped, his face frozen in trepidation.

Both Rebecca and James laughed, and Rebecca leaned forward to kiss him straight on, "Don't think you're revealing some big secret. There are only three of us in the house and I certainly didn't teach our son how to zoom breakable objects around the living room."

Her husband stuck out his tongue.

"ERNESTO, is this your wife? I don't think we've been introduced!" The three Potters turned their heads towards the group near the stage.

"Walburga and Orion are here," Rebecca pointed out. "Oh, and there are their sons. I don't see anything wrong with her oldest, the way she's been talking about him you'd think he was an invalid."

"Yes well, we won't see much of them tonight." Her husband winced; Orion had just let out a booming laugh.

"What are you talking about?" Rebecca waved her wand at the table cards until they stood straight in a line, "We're sitting at the Black Family Table. Don't you remember me telling you about the conversation I had with Walburga and Araminta the other day? They were 'ecstatic' to meet my family at the coronation."

"Oh, right, the school board meetings."

"I'm not part of the school board, Will, I'm part of the 'concerned mother committee'. Mostly I joined to make sure that Araminta doesn't ban books containing references to Muggle literature, you know that."

"Hmph," He yawned.

"Dad just doesn't like you spending time with other people. He wants you all to himself," James stuck his chin in his cupped hands, wrinkling his nose at the both of them.

"I always knew you were a smart one." James Sr. leaned over and ruffled his hair.

"Well anyway, I'm curious to meet Walburga's older son. She talks about him like he's mad. You know that whatever Walburga considers mad has to be a good thing."

Her husband slid his arm around the back of her chair, "Fortify yourselves family, Walburga and her sons' are approaching."

"Rebecca, you made it," Walburga walked to them, circling the table like a shark with bun of brown hair as rigid as a fin straddling her skull. James rose and held out his hand, intercepting her. "And who is this? Oh! Is this your son? I have heard many wonderful things about you from your mother."

James shook her hand and bowed slightly, "Mom has said many wonderful things about you as well. It is a pleasure to finally meet you." He gazed imperiously into her cool blue eyes.

Walburga was a stately woman, with a defined and handsome face. It was impassive of emotions, but she liked to overact in order to give the impression of the emotions her face did not show, "I am delighted! What a polite boy you are, very well raised. You should meet my son Sirius and give him some instructions."

She barked as she side-stepped him to greet his parents.

James snorted quietly and turned to the two boys behind her. They were around the same height, a tiny bit taller than him. The older one was frowning pointedly and holding himself upright like a flagpole. The younger was curious and a bit eager looking. His attention was directed elsewhere. Before James could hold out his hand in greeting, he had jolted suddenly, exclaimed: "Cissy and Bella!" and run towards the door.

The first brother did not even turn to look in his brother's direction. "I'm Sirius. Nice to meet you," he said, unconvincingly.

"Nice to meet you," James cheered, extending his hand, "I'm James Potter! I'm sure your mum has talked about me."

Now he had his full attention. A smile skated across Sirius's face like the dance of a lightning bolt before disappearing, "If I listened to my mother I might be able to confirm that. As I do not, you can be assured that I have no idea who you are."

James laughed, "Well then I should have told you I was Ernesto Villar, maybe you would have been impressed to meet the Minister."

"Hah,." He took a hand and ran it through his hair, relaxing from his steely stance. "Unfortunately for you, I have already been introduced to the Minister, so I would have been confused rather than impressed. Since I have heard many adjectives ascribed to this minister over the previous weeks, none of which were: short or young, I would have had to disregard your introduction as delusional."

James dropped his hand down to a low five, "Nicely put."

Sirius cocked his eyebrows at the hand and glanced upwards, genuinely befuddled. "What do you want?"

"A low five? You know; like the muggles do after their sports victories?"

"I haven't been exposed to anything…muggle." Sirius ran a hand through his hair again, "Are you sure your parents are friends with my parents?"

"Not exactly," James admitted in a whisper, "But I hope that doesn't mean we can't be friends. You're my age, right?"

"I don't know, I can't just estimate age by looking at a person," Sirius pointed out incredulously, whispering also. He had leaned in, flabbergasted and intrigued by the character of this new acquaintance. "I'm nine, how old are you?"

"Nine!" James held out his hand again, but dropped it when he received the same original reaction, "Here I'll show you how to give a low-five. You hold out your hand."

Sirius pulled his hand out of his pocket with increasing hesitation, his eyes narrowing with concentration. Suddenly James smacked down.

*SMACK*.

"OW! WHAT'D YOU DO THAT FOR?!" Sirius jumped forward and grabbed the collar of James's robe, his throbbing hand curled in a fist.

"Shhh," James put his finger up to his lips, motioning with wide-eyes to the conversing parents. "That's how you do it! Here you can try with me!"

James held out his hand as Sirius dropped the Robe collar. It was at this point that Sirius grinned evilly.

*SMACK*

James held his tingling hand up to eye level, an astounded look on his face. The silence stretched on for an uncomfortably long time and Sirius tensed up for a fight.

Then James exploded.

"THAT WAS A BLOODY BRILLANT LOW FIVE! You nearly took my hand off!"

"You're insane," Sirius whispered, smiling despite it. Then his smile deepened, "Low five?"


	3. Chapter Two: 1971, Train

_1971: On the train to Hogwarts_

* * *

(Lily Evans)

_"Sometimes we lose friends for whose loss our regret is greater than our grief, and others for whom our grief is greater than our regret."- François de la Rochefoucauld_

Lillian Evans sat alone in the train compartment, chewing her nails. It was a nasty yet necessary habit, because it diverted her mind from more unpleasant things. Right now she was trying to forget that she had lost her best friend due to same reason she was sitting on this train right now: magic.

Petunia, her older sister, had been her best friend since birth. She knew this because her parents had pictures to prove it. She had been swaddled in hospital blankets and carried out by her sister, a proud and chattering tour guide.

Lily's first word had even been "Pa'Tun!" She smiled as she recalled a dinner when Petunia had cheerfully brought this up at least four times to make a point. Cheerful, smiling, Petunia was dazzling. Her hair was soft blonde that she liked to wear in a neat Ballet Bun, a testament to their pre-school dance lessons, and when she was animated she would pull her hair out of the bun and shake it out, letting it reflect light. Her blue eyes crinkled when Lily would suggest they play together—which was a frequent occurrence—and her slight overbite gave her an enviable dimple.

Petunia… she was losing the friend, not the sister. There would be no more late night cuddling, no more party planning, no more comic book reading, or Sunday morning cartoons. Well, all these things existed, but they would exist without Petunia.

Though, now that she was thinking about it, she realized that she had been losing her sister's friendship over the course of time. It had all started with Severus Snape insulting Petunia—telling her she wasn't special. After that, Petunia began to hang out more with friends from school. She had always been on the Cheerleading Squad, but she hadn't devoted as much time to it before the incident. She came home with these snooty—well they weren't too bad, just not Lily's favorite—friends. Lily had been immensely jealous and decided that she would just hang out with Severus Snape more, and enjoy her secret world of magic. But when the letter came, and Petunia got upset, Lily felt terrible.

"What are you apologizing for?" Petunia had scoffed, "You obviously earned it."

Despite her words, she was still hurt. Lily tried everything to make it up to her—secret "I love you" parties, cards full of reminders of the good times they had spent together, apologizing, and self-depreciating comments. Nothing worked. She felt so guilty she spent two nights up in the dark, watching the moon, paralyzed with the overwhelming emotion.

Now she was traveling into a world that had a stone wall set in place to block people like her parents and sister from entering, literally. People like her—witches and wizards—did not welcome "muggles" into their schools. Lily thought this was quite silly, as Muggles let Witches into their schools. She had told Petunia this, but had been met by an uncharacteristically scalding look. Her heart throbbed at the memory; it felt like her chest was tightening into a bruised mass of nerves.

The compartment door slid open and Severus walked in.

"Are you alright?" He asked, sitting beside her.

She wanted to confide in him, but he hated Petunia, he wouldn't understand.

"Just nervous," she managed a smile as he handed her a caldron cake from the cart. He was so thoughtful; at least they were still best friends. But then again, she was traveling into his world and out of the world of her sister.

He paused as she pulled down the wrapper and began to munch on the sweet cake. "There is nothing to be worried about, we learned all those spells together. We'll know twice as much as everyone else, and no one will look down on you for being… well, you know."

He reached out and touched her hair.

"Hey!" She batted his hand away, "who said you could touch my hair!"

He flushed, "oh, sorry, I didn't mean…" she interrupted him by reaching out and messing up his hair so that it obscured his surprised expression with a curtain of black.

"Gotcha'!" She switched seats so that she was out of range, just in case he launched a counter attack.

His laughter died out a few moments later when the compartment door opened. Two wizards about their age stood in the entranceway, surveying the compartment with interest. Lily observed them, curious. She hadn't known what to expect from a school full of witches and wizards. The only wizard she knew was Severus, so she had the mental image of a bunch of kids that looked just like him. Obviously wizard's ranged in looks as much as muggles did.

They were both taller, for one. The wizard to the left had a stubbed nose below waves of coffee-black hair. He looked a child model from a catalogue, down to the slightly bored look on his face. His friend was a bit shorter with an almost chocolate-brown mushroom hair cut.

"Hi," Said the boy with the mushroom cut hair, "can we sit here? The other compartments are full."

"Sure," She waved at them to enter, "Come on in."

Severus sat frozen. He was so bad with meeting new people, so Lilly decided to be diplomatic.

"My name is Lily Evans, and this is Severus Snape."

"James Potter, and my friend is Sirius Black," The boy replied, holding out his hand. She shook it. He had a firm grip, and moist fingers. He leaned over her hand to kiss it, and she had a brief glimpse of long tilted eyelashes. His lips barely brushed smooth across the skin of her knuckle when he flew backwards into the door.

"Omph," he said, startled for a moment.

As she stepped backwards, Lily lost her balance and fell roughly into the seat, and by the time she had understood what had happened to James (Severus had his wand still out and had obviously used a spell on him) all three boys had their wands out. Two of the three wands were pointed at Severus. One of the three wands was pointed at James. It took her about three seconds to figure out whose side she was on. She stood in front of Severus and held out her arms.

"Put your wands away," she said, panting.

James dropped his wand, keeping his hazel eyes on her face. "Sirius, put your wand down."

"Him first." Sirius indicated Severus with a flick of his hand.

Severus looked at Lily. She nodded at him. Reluctantly, and keeping his eyes on James, he lowered his wand. Sirius followed his lead, looking a lot less bored and more grim then he had earlier.

"Your greasy friend needs to watch who he uses magic on," Sirius said, coolly.

It was Lily's turn to take out her wand.

"You both need to leave," She said, pointing her wand at Sirius.

"I'm so scared," Sirius said, not even bothering to arm himself again. "What are you going to do? You're the size of a goblin."

"I know a couple hexes that might wipe that smirk off your face, permanently." Lily said, reddening. "Of course, they might wipe off your face as well."

"I'm shaking." Sirius nevertheless had his hand on his wand again.

"Knock it off," James interrupted, uncomfortable looking and standing in indecision near the compartment entrance. "Let's go find another compartment."

"Whatever," Sirius said, backing through the door without turning his back.

James seemed like he had more to say. He studied Lily for a while with a strange look at her outstretched wand. But without a word, he, too, exited.

"What was that?" Lily asked, dropping her wand to her side. "Why did you attack that boy?"

"Sorry," Severus said. He ran a hand through his hair, parting the lines of darkness with his pale fingers, "I don't like either of them."

"James didn't seem so bad."

"I know their families. Sirius is a _Black_. Our parents don't get along."

Lily interrupted him, "Why does it matter if your parents are fighting?"

Severus switched sides of the compartment and sat next to her, between her and the door, almost protectively, "The wizarding world is different."

Lily thought back to her parents, and the problems with her sister, "maybe not."

"No but, you'll see, the wizarding world is different," Severus sat up suddenly, "Lily you need to get into Slytherin, okay? Otherwise we won't be able to be friends."

"You've told me this a billion times." Lily complained, putting her thumb nail into the space between her teeth. "I am going to get into Slytherin, don't worry."

"I don't know how they choose, but you're good at magic! I've seen you perform really good magic before, but they might not test your magic."

"I've read all the books. I've done a bunch of outside reading. We've practiced spells and potions together. Slytherin is the house that is for those who are cunning with their magic, and I'm good at potion-making, which is a Slytherin skill." Lily dug through her bag and held the gift from Severus's mother, proving it was still there. It was a clay caldron stirrer with her initials engraved on it. "Your mom has taught me plenty about potions."

"Hm," Severus sat back, his left hand rested on his knee. She reached out and grabbed it, feeling his fingers tighten and then release. He was so nervous about physical contact, she couldn't understand it. His mother was the same way, though, so he might have picked it up from her.

His hand was hot but not the least bit sweaty. Lily felt the ghost of James hand slip away and replace in her mind with Severus, comparing the two almost idly. It was an involuntary comparison. She remembered the light kiss as if it had happened to someone else other than herself.

"Lily?"

"Yes?"

His grip tightened, "Now I'm nervous."

* * *

(Severus Snape)

_It is not flesh and blood but the heart which makes us fathers and sons. ~Johann Schiller_**  
**

The corridor of the train exploded with what sounded like a blocked hex and Severus braced himself against the seat cushion. Lily's thin fingers slipped between his grip, looping around his thumb. He glanced over, sizing up her response. She gave him a tentative smile, looking more curious then worried.

"What was that?" She asked, flicking a stray piece of copper hair off her forehead.

"A hex." He wasn't sure, but he assumed it has been that James Potter and Sirius Black.

Sirius's family had alienated his mother from Wizarding society, just because she had married his father, who was a muggle. Of course, his father could have alienated himself, given a proper amount of time, but the actions of Sirius's family were inexcusable and undeniably cruel. Severus remembered the stuck up nose, and grim air of Sirius. The son had their bad blood: he hadn't liked his manner, or expression.

And Lily had been _kissed_ by that stupid, filthy, muggle-hater's friend.

How dare they try to trick her into being charmed by them? She could be so naive. For example, she thought her sister was mad at her for leaving. Actually, Petunia was jealous that Lily had better abilities, that Lily was special.

Severus scowled. Lily had been hurt by Petunia despite all that he had done to prevent it. He had been telling Lily since the moment they became friends that Petunia wasn't worth it. But she always gave the same response, "she's my sister! I love her!"

Well, family didn't mean love. Severus knew that. He hated his father, and his father was biologically his family. But, his father was a drunkard, abusive, and scum. While Petunia was jealous, manipulative… Severus stopped his analysis to check on Lily again. She was still hurting, but showing no outward signs of it.

He felt so angry that she was hurting.

"Sev, I'm going to go around and meet some people," Lily announced, "Do you want to come… or?"

He shook his head, meeting new people was the least of his concerns. "Be careful."

She rolled her eyes, standing, "I'll be fine."

Time without her presence slowed almost to a halt, the scenery outside the train window blurred into a pattern of the greens and browns of autumn. Severus settled into thought, trying to recall all of his life before this point.

It had started in a fog of darkness and pain. The loneliness of being an only child in a broken home marked his early childhood. He remembered the occasional attention of his mother, between alcohol binges, her clean linen smell mixed with the pungency of vodka. His father was rarely home, and his arrival caused Severus intermittent fear and relief, for without his fathers small income it was unlikely that they would survive.

Up until Hogwarts his most treasured memories were with Lily. She was small, bright, and warm. He smiled, considering her odd habit of closing her eyes and spinning with her finger pointing out in front of her. Wherever she was pointing when she stopped spinning is where they would go, meandering until night fell.

She had always been very social. In fact, wherever they went she would end up engaging a stranger in conversation. _"Uh excuse me sir!"_ She would shout, tugging on the shirt of an older man, _"It's very nice to meet you, do you know where a bookstore is?" _Maybe her parents had never warned her to stay away from strangers like Severus's mom had. Whenever she saw anyone crying she would inevitably walk over to them and offer words of comfort, giving them unasked for advice on how they could feel better. _"Ice-cream works!"_ Meanwhile Severus would stand back and watch, uncomfortable.

He would lecture her on it later, "Mom says you shouldn't talk to strangers!"

She would roll her eyes, "They're just like us."

"Some of them are dangerous," He informed her.

"Not her!" Lily would protest. "She was just sad."

She just didn't understand that there were bad people in the world. Severus knew, because his own father was the kind of dangerous person his mother warned him about. And he wasn't even a stranger.

The compartment door slammed open and five older looking wizards walked in. Severus looked up, surprised at the interruption. He gauged their expressions, not a single wizard was smiling.

"You're Madame Prince's child," Said the first, he was slim and blonde, with a thin flaring nose. "Severus Snape?"

"Yes?" Severus glanced around, feeling more and more nervous by the sheer size of the group. Maybe they had come here to beat him up, kids from the neighborhood had done that a lot.

He winced as the wizard thrust his hand forward, "Lucius Malfoy."

Severus took his hand and shook it, honored. The Malfoys were wizarding royalty, they were known for being friends with the right people. His mother had no problems with the Malfoys. But, he was confused. How did Lucius know about his mother, and what business did this group have in his compartment?

"Let me get directly to business," Lucius broke in, staring into his eyes with a sharp, interested look, "If you get into Slytherin we would like you to join our group. I have reason to think you will live up to the success of your mother in potions and we're always looking to involve more intelligent wizards with the right… background."

Severus blushed. He had never felt more flattered in his life; Lucius Malfoy wanted him to join his group. He stuttered a reply, "I would be very interested as well, but…" He remembered Sirius with hesitation, would other purists accept him? "You know my father, he's a muggle."

"Do you care about your father?" Lucius asked keenly.

"I hate him," Severus growled.

"Then we're in agreement, if you get into Slytherin you are welcome to join. And maybe, one day, we can handle your father together."

It was only until they had left him alone in the compartment had he remembered Lily. How would she fit into their estimations? She was an obviously gifted witch, but she was muggle-born.

Would they accept him if they knew how he felt about her?

He wouldn't want their "acceptance" if giving her up was the cost. It would be like giving up the light altogether, and embracing the dark.

* * *

(Lily Evans)

_Youth is a disease from which we all recover. ~Dorothy Fulheim_

After walking around the train, meeting people, Lily was ready to head back to Severus and their compartment. She had met a couple first year girls she already liked. One of them was even a half blood who had been raised like a muggle!

Her two new friends, (she felt sure they would become good friends), were named Alice and Ivy. Alice was a quiet girl with an expressive face. Her hair was waist length and divided into long sausage curls. It was a deep and shiny brown color. She was very agreeable, and spoke very little.

Meanwhile the half-muggle one, named Ivy, was tall and gangly, with frizzly blond hair she blamed on a month in the Bahamas. Her parents had apparently paid for her to get her hair braided, and she hadn't bothered to unbraid it until she got home, yesterday.

She had been talking about the Bahamas trip for the last half hour, and Lily felt as if she had been there with her.

"I didn't want the braids: it's mama. She's always trying to get me to do weird things with my hair." Ivy complained, striding ahead of them with her long legs. "Parents can be so annoying!"

Alice agreed, "yeah."

Ivy smiled at her; they were clearly going to get along very well.

"Well your hair will be back to normal soon, I bet," Lily said, reaching out to touch it. She twirled a strand between her fingers, "It's so soft."

Like Petunia's hair had been.

Ivy turned her smile to Lily, "It's usually stick straight. I'll be surprised if it isn't back to normal by tonight!"

"Hey, you guys want to meet my best friend?" Lily asked. She had been away from the compartment for twenty minutes, and she was sure Severus would be worried.

"You already have a best friend here? You're muggle-born too, aren't you?" Ivy said. She stopped suddenly to hold onto a door handle as the train rattled around a corner.

"He's from my neighborhood."

"A boy!" Ivy poked Lily's shoulder, "You have a boyfriend?" Ivy was turning out to be a mercilous teaser, like Petunia.

Lily shook the comparison away, scowling.

"No," Lily felt her cheeks warming up, and she blew into them with a closed mouth to conceal the blush, "he's my best friend. I don't have a crush on him or anything."

"So then, you have another boy you like?" Ivy cooed.

Lily decided to turn the tables.

"No! Why, do you have a crush already?"

Lily thought that Ivy would definitely drop the subject if she was the one being teased, that's what Petunia would have done.

But, surprisingly, Ivy looked unabashed as she responded, "Actually, yes! Don't tell anyone, okay?"

Alice and Lily both agreed to keep her secret, interested. They waited for Ivy to elaborate, but she would not continue if she wasn't prompted. She mimicked a taciturn reserve as she smirked silently.

"Who?" Lily asked, giving in.

"Sirius Black!"

"Really?" Lily tried to remember what Sirius had done to make him cool enough to have a crush on.

She thought he was a bit of a prat. But then she remembered James leaning over her hand, his lips brushing against her skin. Her stomach turned, and she tried to associate the sick response with an identifiable feeling. What was this? Did she have a crush on him? No! She didn't want to have a crush on anyone.

"Yeah, he's really cute!" Ivy said, "Have you guys met him?"

"No," Alice rejoined, her face was small and thoughtful.

"I did. He was with his friend James Potter." Lily said. "He's mean. I don't like him. His friend was weird too, he kissed my hand."

After she said it, she felt embarrassed. Had that been too much information? Lily looked up, blushing, and sweating slightly. She hoped Ivy wouldn't take this information and tease her with it. She was less worried about Alice's reaction.

"I can't believe he kissed your hand!" Ivy's eyes were wide, "Did you tell him he could?"

"Um, no?"

"That's really rude," Alice said. Her eyebrows were arched and she looked concerned.

Had it been rude? Lily thought about it. Maybe that's why Severus had been so angry, because he shouldn't have kiss her on the hand. She had never been kissed on the hand before.

Suddenly, she was annoyed. How could he just walk in there and kiss her hand without asking? Ivy and Alice were right, it had been really rude.

"Why do you think Sirius is mean, though?" Ivy asked, impatient.

Lily put her hands on her hips, "he called my best friend greasy, and I thought it was mean."

Ivy smiled, her shoulders straightened, "He's cute though."

She was clearly proud to have a crush on a cute boy. It was as if having a crush on him meant that she was just as cute and crushable. Though, as Lily studied her, she had to agree that Ivy was cute enough for a nicer guy to have a crush on, though she was very tall.

A couple girls at her elementary school had had boyfriends in fifth grade. One girl, Carolyn Jones, had even had a boyfriend in third grade, and everyone had talked about it. Lily had never had an interest in boys, but she had become aware that people around her were beginning to race towards adulthood at a speed she could not match. She was kind of envious of Ivy's crush; and the potential for her new friend to have a boyfriend. A boyfriend of her own, a boy who liked her. What did that even mean?

Lily thought about this for a while, looking towards Alice, who appeared just as confused as she was. Alice was chewing her lip.

"Do you have a crush on anybody?" Lily asked her.

Alice shook her head.

"Lily?" Severus poked his head out of the compartment down the hall, "We're almost at the station."

Then he saw she was talking to her new friends and hastily ducked from sight.

"That's my friend Severus, he's really shy." Lily explained.

"Oh," Ivy frowned, "Well I guess we'll see you soon, unless you want to change in our compartment. It's weird to change in front of a boy."

Lily glanced backwards, through the empty hall to the compartment with her belongings. "Yeah, I'll get my stuff."

She explained the situation to Severus as she collected her bags, stuttering when she got to the part about not being able to change in front of a boy. Severus had never been a _boy_ to her before, and the change in their relationship seemed weird enough to trip over as she explained it.

He blushed, "Well okay, I'll see you at sorting then."

"Yes! Definitely!" With renewed vigor, Lily turned to leave.

But, she stopped at the door, pausing as if some ghostly force was holding her there in time. She rotated quickly, and stared at Severus with the shock that accompanies an indefinable chasm between the past and future. Rarely had she felt anxious for something as small at this action, leaving the compartment.

His expression was glum, and he watched the scenery from the window in a dream.

She wanted him to look at her and smile, but he stared still, watching the window with that sad expression.

Breathing in, steadily facing forward, she left him behind. The compartment shut with a snap behind her, but she did not hear it over the whine of the train as it whirred around another bend in the track.

Later, she didn't even rejoin Severus as they were lead by a giant man to the boats. She didn't even see him get off the train.

After looking around for him for a bit, she saw him in the boat that had just left the docks. He was sitting with a gaggle of boys that he was even talking to. Lily had never seen him talk to any other boys, and she was slightly suspicious. Was he purposefully taking a separate boat so that he didn't have to talk to her? Was he mad at her for joining her new friends in their compartment and leaving him behind?

"What house do you want to be in?" Lily heard Ivy ask Alice beside her.

Lily was so preoccupied that she didn't even notice that James Potter had joined their boat until they set off from the dock.

When she did notice, she felt the annoyance from earlier reemerge. His smile was small, and his eyes followed a far off point in the distance. She turned to follow his line of sight.

"I want to be in Ravenclaw," Alice murmured.

Lily barely heard her response.

Bars of blue and white clouds broke across the face of the black castle stretching into a murky sky. This dark castle rose from the lake, framed by a forest of shadowed green. Lily raised her hands to her lips.

"Wow!" Ivy chattered, rubbing her arms violently to keep warm, "I'm so excited!"

"Me too," Lily agreed, holding her arm up to eye level.

"What house do you want to be in?" Alice asked, barely glancing at the school in the distance.

"Slytherin." Lily said.

James, who had been so quiet, quiet enough to forget about, sat up straight and stared, "What?"

He was visibly upset.

"What's wrong with that?" Lily asked, annoyed.

"Slytherin is for bad wizards who like dark magic," James informed her, "Plus, there is no way they'd let in a muggle-born witch."

"How do you know I'm muggle-born?" Lily said, fast becoming angry.

She had a short fuse, and his last couple statements had made her feel insulted.

"I just know," He said, sounding superior. He flicked his fingers through his hair, the way Sirius had earlier, and frowned. He was obviously trying to be cool, she could tell by his attitude alone. "Salazare Slytherin, the founder of Slytherin house, hated muggle-born wizards. There is no way the sorting hat would put you in Slytherin."

"Are you saying I'm not good enough for Slytherin house?"

Both Ivy and Alice were watching them with open mouths.

"I'm saying that you could do better than Slytherin!" He messed with his hair again, as if the wind hadn't tousled it enough, "I bet you anything you're placed in Gryfindor. I'll be in Gryfindor too, of course. Gryfindor is for the brave wizards."

Lily glared at him, "brave wizards get into Slytherin too!"

Her gaze drifted across the water to Severus, whose boat had reached the shore. She watched him step onto to land. He was still talking to those boys.

If he heard James telling her she couldn't be in Slytherin, he'd be really mad. He'd reassure her that she was going to get into Slytherin.

Why hadn't they gotten on the boat together?

As they walked along the pathway to the castle James found Sirius and joined him at the front of the group. Lily eyed his back fretfully. He kept being rude, kissing her hand, telling her she wasn't good enough for slytherin. What was his deal anyway? Was he making fun of her?

"I think he likes you," Ivy said, jabbing her in the ribs.

"Ow," Lily pushed her back, less roughly, "why do you think that?"

"He ditched Sirius to be on our boat, for one thing, and he called you brave!" She waved at another first year girl who was talking to a large group of girls, her attention divided.

Alice spoke up, "I think he likes you, too, Lily."

Lily craned to see over the heads of her fellow first-years. Where was Severus? She wanted to talk to him about this new information. The annoying boy had a crush on her. Severus should have been the first to know.

But he was still talking to those boys from earlier. Up close, Lily saw that they were not friendly looking at all. One of them was fat and bug-eyed, with a glower. The other was sickly pale, with a light brown shaved head. She felt intimidated by the aura they gave off, and by the solid back that Severus was presenting to her. Why wasn't he turning to see where she was?

She was so distracted, and hurt, she didn't pay attention to the giant man guiding them into a set of double doors below the castle. His low, brittle voice hummed in the background of her thoughts.

Was Severus mad at her? If she lost him too, she would be devastated. He was her best friend, her confidant, her past and present. Losing him would mean losing her childhood, cutting cords and moving into adolescence, alone.

His head turned and he noticed her, craning to see him. She waved.

He paused.

Then he waved back.

Though he didn't smile, and returned to the conversation with those strange boys, she felt better, happier. Even if he was mad at her, the fact that he waved meant there was hope to talk him out of it later. Ivy had floated over to another group of girls, and was rapidly speculating about house placements. These girls were explaining all about the house system.

Alice had stayed behind, trained to her side. Lily looked down; her new friend was a head shorter than her.

Alice smiled, "I'm really excited," she said, "I hope we're in the same house."

"That would be fun," Lily looped her arm through Alice's, watching their giant guide lead them across the path to a set of large doors where a woman stood waiting. "But even if we're not in the same house, we can hang out all the time outside of classes!"

"Yeah!" Alice flushed slightly, "I like you a lot, Lily. I hope we become good friends."

"Me too," Lily said.

She felt kind of corny, but the smile on Alice's face made her happy she had said it. Alice and she were on the same wavelength, though the other girl was less verbose, and she really did feel as if they would become very good friends.

"Thank you Hagrid, I'll take it from here," the woman who had been waiting for them called Lily's attention to the front of the group.

She was middle-aged, with streaks of gray in her chestnut hair. Her face was smooth and her nose curved below the rims of her glasses. She reminded Lily of a portrait she had seen of Emily Bronte.

Lily dearly wished she was closer to the front of the group, because she couldn't hear the woman very well. As they were led inside, she pushed her way through the crowd, tugging Alice along with her, nudging them forward.

Then, they were inside. The entrance hall reminded her of the entrance hall to a museum, torches lighting the floor with pools of light. A massive staircase led upwards to a mysterious upper level.

"Hey Lily…" James said.

Lily tensed. She hadn't realized that she had moved up to the place next to him. She was about to move away when…

"Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," The woman began, "My name is Professor McGonagall. Please follow me. I will go into the Great Hall ahead of you, and when the sorting is about to begin, I will return to retrieve you."

She led them into a small side room.

Lily took this opportunity to move to the other side of Alice, so that James wouldn't talk to her. If he did like her, she didn't want to make him think she had a crush on him too. When they were all in the room, to her chagrin, she noticed that James had moved next to her again. He tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention.

"Do you know anything about the sorting hat?" He asked her.

"I think Professor McGonagall will explain it," Lily said, without facing him.

"I can tell you about it, if you'd like," He said.

"No thank you," she replied, still not facing him.

"The start-of-term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house has its own noble history," Professor McGonagall said, standing near the door. (James snorted, and whispered into her ear, _'There is nothing noble about the history of Slytherin, trust me.'_)"While you are at Hogwarts, your success will earn your house points, while breaking the rules will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup. I wish each of you the best of luck in bringing your house points. The ceremony will take place in a couple minutes in front of the school, please make sure you are looking your best. Please wait quietly*."

Professor McGonagall left the room.

"She didn't explain the sorting hat at all," James pointed out, sounding eager, "do you still want to know about it?"

"I do!" Ivy had returned, and she was eyeing Sirius, who stood silently at James's side, inspecting his nails.

Lily crossed her arms. She was nervous for the sorting so talking about it would just make it worse. Why was Severus still talking to those boys? He should be over here, standing with her!

"It's a magical hat, charmed to think!" James began, lowering his voice. Was it Lily's imagination, or were people leaning closer? No, it wasn't her imagination. A couple first years had turned around and were listening. "It actually knows what is in your head, and it knows who you really are!"

"Wait, so the hat can think?" Ivy asked, intrigued.

"Yeah! Then it sorts you into the house that best fits your personality. If you're brave, and strong, you get into Gryffindor!" He sighed theatrically, "If you're clever you go to Ravenclaw, if you're friendly you go to Hufflepuff, and if you're SNEAKY you go to Slytherin."

He stared meaningfully at Lily.

"Sneaky and evil," Sirius added.

"What if you have more than one trait, like if you're clever and friendly?" Alice asked, interested.

"The hat knows which one of those qualities you have the most of, the biggest quality, and puts you in the proper house. That's why Lily is getting into Gryffindor."

"What do I have to do with this?" Lily blushed.

She didn't like the fact that the entire crowd of people around them were staring at her either.

She looked around to see if Severus had heard James, but he and his new friends were the only ones who hadn't been listening. They were standing in a corner, still talking.

"I'm just telling you what's going to happen," James turned to Sirius, "You'll get into Gryffindor too."

"What about me, James?" A tiny brunette stepped forward to be assessed.

But she would never find out, because just then the doors opened and Professor McGonagall walked in, "Form a line first years. Follow me."

Lily took great care to be sandwiched between Ivy and Alice in the line, just in case James started talking to her again in front of the whole school.

The Great Hall was full of students who Lily didn't dare look at. Instead, she took in the beauty of the hall itself. She had read _Hogwarts: a History_ so she knew the ceiling had been enchanted to look like the sky above it. But knowing something and seeing it were two different things. The clouds she had seen from the boat were floating above them, and the long, bulky tables, were laid out like a picnic set up for a crowd of guests beneath the stars.

The front table looked like a table lined with judges, but Lily guessed that these 'judges' were actually the professors.

Professor McGonagall put a stool and a hat in front of them and stared at it. It was a dirty, patched hat, not at all what Lily would have expected of a hat with such a reputation.

It began to sing:

"_You've heard about the sorting hat__  
__and I am surely he__  
__I'll look inside your souls and find__  
__the place where you should be.__  
__It does not matter where you're put__  
__but what you learn in school_

_It does not matter how you start__  
__whether sage or fool,__  
__For darkness lives outside these halls__  
__it tells no man apart__  
__you could be cowardly and dead,__  
__alive and brave of heart.__  
__When I choose your house today__  
__I'll choose between the four__  
__but you'll be choosing your own life__  
__and making it mean more._

_Gryffindor for brave young souls,__  
__Hufflepuff for loyal heart_

_Clever Ravenclaw, sly Slytherin,__  
__But will you play a part?__  
__Ignore today as I define__  
__your most beloved trait__  
__and move beyond the labels as__  
__you work to make your fate."_

The sorting hat had given them advice. Lily tried to commit the words to memory, but her attempts were made useless by the distracting murmurs from the student body.

Sporadic applause came from the professors at the head table.

Professor McGonagall held out of a roll of parchment and cleared her throat. "Please step forward, put on the hat, and sit on the stool when I call your name… Ace, Ivy!"

Ivy strode forward, picked up the hat and fumbled with it for a moment. Then it was on her head and shouting, "Gryffindor!"

Ivy smiled at Sirius, and then shifted her gaze to Lily and Alice with a grin.

"Asworth, Jordon,"

"Hufflepuff!"

Lily made eye contact with Alice, who was mouthing, "oh no." Her last name was "Zamosjki" so she was going to be called last.

"Black, Sirius."

Sirius strode forward, with the same easy confidence as Ivy. He stuffed the hat on his head. It sat there for a second. Lily noticed that although Sirius had walked over confidently, his face was green and his lips were white. "GRYFFINDOR."

There was no applause for him as he took his place at the Gryffindor table, just silence. James cheered happily from the sidelines, seemingly oblivious.

"Carthine, Catholine,"

"Ravenclaw!"

Only a few more names until she was called, Lily crossed her fingers. Slytherin. Slytherin. Please Slytherin. She didn't care if people called her sneaky; she just wanted to be with Severus.

"Evans, Lily!"

Shakily, she stepped towards the hat. She could hear James caterwauling. She grabbed the hat, it was coarse and light. Then, she put it on her head.

"Definitely Gryffindor," the hat said quietly.

"No! Slytherin!" she begged under her breath. "Put me in Slytherin."

"Sorry dear, but you belong in GRYFFINDOR!"

Lily groaned. Good for nothing hat. She couldn't help slamming it back on the stool as she stomped away. Also, she couldn't bring herself look at either James or Severus as she made her way to the Gryffindor table. Ivy patted the seat next to hers, smiling.

"Too bad about Slytherin, but at least we're together!" She whispered encouragingly.

Maybe Severus would be put into Gryffindor! Then they could be together anyway. She began to pray softly.

James sat next to her at the table and poked her in the shoulder, "I told you so!" He said jubilantly, "I knew you were going to be put in Gryffindor."

"Good for you," Lily said.

Then Severus was being called to the hat. It sat on his head for a very long time, and Lily held her breath.

"SLYTHERIN!"

He wasn't smiling as he walked over to the Slytherin table, even though he really wanted to be in slytherin. Lily sighed, turning her head to the empty plate in front of her. This was a depressing start to her new life in the world of magic. Her sister and her best friend had been ripped from her.

She turned quickly to see if Severus was looking at her, but he was facing the wall. She was getting tired of seeing his back.

Alice was the last to be sorted. However, she was sorted into Gryffindor and Lily moved towards Ivy so that Alice could fit between her and James. He wasn't happy about this, but she didn't care. She was sad and hungry, and didn't like him anyway.

She felt at odds with herself, she was used to being cheerful, but things were happening that she could not resort to her natural optimism. So she was left responding with sadness, and it didn't feel normal. Was this growing up, after all? If so, she'd gladly take childhood, if she had a choice.

Alice giggled as the headmaster stood. She nudged Lily and pointed at his hair. It looked like he had stuck his finger into an electric socket. Lily giggled too; relieved that she could still laugh.

"Welcome students! I am Professor Albus Dumbledore and I would like to say a few, short, sentences before we begin to eat." The students laughed a little, and Lily laughed too, though she didn't know what was funny, "First, Professor Sprout has planted a Whomping Willow on the school grounds. You must not aggravate this plant, as it is quite capable of defending itself. Madame Pomfrey has requested me to warn all students that she will only treat the first few injuries that occurs as the result of approaching this extremely volatile, but rare and beautiful, tree. Second, Filch has banned dueling in the hallways, so the dueling club will have to move to a classroom for their practices this year." A few students groaned, "Lastly, the ministry of magic would like to emphasize that their tracing spells on underage witches and wizards have recently been improved, making it easier than ever for them to detect violations of the use of underage magic, you might want to pass that along to your younger siblings. Now, let's eat!"

Lily blinked rapidly, staring at her plate. It was full of steaming food. What a wonderful bit of magic! Had they whisked in the food while everyone had been staring at the headmaster? No, this was real magic, not a trick. The food had sprung from the plate itself, and it smelled so delicious.

Lily poked at the mashed potatoes under her nose, and breathed in.

Then she turned again to look at Severus. This time she saw his eyes. He was staring back. She smiled, waving slightly.

He lifted his hand and gave a wave.

Suddenly Lily felt like crying, but it wasn't because she was miserable anymore. It was because she had hope that everything would turn out okay; she was far from losing her best friend. Maybe there was hope for her and Petunia too.

Lily turned back to her food, clenching her fists. She wasn't going to give up!


	4. Chapter Three: 1976, Potions Lessons

_1976: The Thorn in the Lion's Paw_

* * *

"An owl came from Villar this morning," Peter said. "My mum asked him that question you wanted an answer to a couple months ago."

"Oh, right," James replied distractedly. "About?"

James was hunched over a library book about quidditch maneuvers and his wire glasses had slid down to the tip of his nose. He seemed too tall for the common room couch, with his legs spread apart on the carpet and knees at chest height.

"About the Death Eaters, and whether it was possible that some of them were students at Hogwarts," Remus spoke from near the fire in a matter-of-fact voice.

He was sitting cross-legged with a decrepit, peeling book cradled in his lap, thumbing through the pages absentmindedly. Remus had a light beard and thinning mouse-brown hair that hung in clumps around his ears. He was wearing maroon robes and a shaggy gold scarf to show support for Gryffindor in the upcoming quidditch match, and with his angular, pale face, he looked rugged and artsy in the glow of the flames. Or, at least a couple forth year girls thought so as they walked by. They signaled their interest by giggling when he glanced at them.

"Good memory, mate," James said, looked up from his book. "Did the minister have any names?"

"You can read the letter yourself Prongs," Sirius snatched the parchment from Peter's hand and tossed it to James. "Got the minister to write back, eh? Guess you have your uses."

He shoved Peter's shoulder not-so-lightly and joined James on the couch.

Peter stood so he could see over Sirius to the letter, though he had already read it that morning when it came at breakfast. He pretended to read along, unwilling to be left out of the reading. It was thanks to him the letter had even arrived in the first place, he thought, he shouldn't be left out.

It read:

_Peter,_

_Your mother informed me that you were inquiring as to the Ministry's knowledge of Death Eater activities by students at Hogwarts. The Ministry cannot divulge any certainties at this juncture. Some officials have speculated that illegal dark magic is being performed at Hogwarts. However, there is too little proof to prosecute in these cases. Your headmaster, Dumbledore, believes that the Ministry should not interfere with Hogwarts matters. Otherwise the school would be monitored by officials and suspected Death Eaters would be immediately apprehended. If you would like to take action on your own, you are in the ideal position to monitor suspicious behavior of your fellow students and report your findings to the Ministry. Your mother would also like me to relay the fact that we have openings in junior Ministry positions if you are interested in joining the Ministry after graduation. Be warned that these positions are quite dangerous. We have had several youth casualties over the last couple years._

_Send your mother my regards,  
Ernesto Villar_

"Wormtail—a junior ministry official?" Sirius scoffed. "Don't you need at least three O.W.L.S for that?"

"It's about who you know, not what you know." Peter said, his eyes darting to the portrait and back to Sirius. "That's what my mother says."

Remus closed his book with a sigh, "That system is quite unfair for those who are more qualified to serve in those important positions. If you ask me, I think it's…"

Sirius interrupted him, "Oh shut up Moony. Don't discourage Wormtail," He turned to Peter, "I hope you become a junior ministry official, Wormtail, I need a good laugh."

James folded the letter and put it into the pocket of his robes. He was wearing a very thoughtful expression. He ignored the tension and the affronted looks on both Remus and Peter's face as he commanded the attention of the group by clapping his hands together.

"If we mark suspicious students on the Marauder's Map, we can trace their unusual movements and catch them doing illegal magic," He said. "Imagine if we caught Snivillus or his little friends playing around with dark magic. Dumbledore would have to expel them."

"Great idea," Sirius said gleefully, running his hands through his hair. "When should we begin? Tonight after the match?"

"I can't tonight," James said quickly. "We can start tomorrow after classes though. I have to get ready for the match. I'll see you lot in the stands!"

He stood and put the book hastily on the couch beside Sirius, who looked bewildered.

"Slow down, mate," Sirius said, staring from the book to James. "What are you doing tonight?"

"Nothing important, just stuff," said James, walking to the portrait. "But I have to get to the match now or I'll be late."

* * *

Lily sat beside Alice in the stands, clutching the red and gold scarf tightly around her throat and shoulders, bundled tightly in her winter cloak. It was early march, but she liked to be warm more than she liked to flaunt her body, as other Hogwarts girls were taking advantage of the slightly-spring weather to do. Ivy, for example, was wearing a skirt that bunched colorfully around her knees and a body-hugging sweater in shocking gold that came past her hips and brought attention to the fact that her figure was, quite clearly, hourglass shaped.

She was sitting next to Sirius and chatting with him with a sultry upwards glance. Without looking at her, he was murmuring responses from the corner of his mouth, focused on the Gryffindor team stepping onto the field with broomsticks in hand.

Alice sat quietly between Lily and Ivy, leaning forward with her arms in her lap, narrowing her eyes at a point in the distance.

Hufflepuff was playing against Gryffindor and Lily suspected that Alice's boyfriend, who played for Hufflepuff, had given her quite a hard time about supporting his team. She had come back to the dorms the previous night shaken up so much that she was even crying.

Lily liked Alice's boyfriend, a gregarious seventh year, and knew that he would never do anything to hurt Alice. She figured that Alice was dealing with the pressure of her increased workload as well, hence the tears.

"Are you feeling better today?" She asked Alice kindly, putting her arm around Alice's shoulder.

"I am," Alice said, smiling shyly. "I was being silly."

"He should be more understanding that you have your own house to support, too." Lily said emphatically. "I mean, Quidditch is just a sport, it's not life or death. But you do have the right to your house loyalties."

"Hmm?" Alice glanced sharply at Lily. "We didn't fight about Quidditch."

"Oh," Lily let her arm drop. "What did…?"

But the referee, Madame Hooch, blew her whistle and the game began. Lily knew she had no time after the match to talk to Alice, though she was quite curious about the conflict between her and her boyfriend.

Sadly, Lily had agreed to do a very unpleasant task after the match—tutor James Potter in Potions—and felt that she would prefer anything over this… requirement. However, she had promised Professor Slughorn that she would do it, and she always kept her promises.

She didn't have a lot of time to think about the lesson during the quidditch match. The match was short, and brutal. The Gryffindor team, well mainly just Potter, scored 160 points in the first half hour. It was a mercy when the Gryffindor seeker captured the snitch and ended the game.

Lily sighed as the rest of Gryffindor jumped up and screamed their approval. Her mind was on the hours ahead, teaching Potter how to make potions, fending off his feeble flirtations. It was going to be a nightmare. She doubted he would concentrate on the lesson, and had a suspicion that he was using this opportunity as a chance to spend time with her in a capacity that she could not avoid. She had to give him credit; he employed quite a clever strategy. He had complained tearfully to Slughorn about his N.E.W.T.s—said his parents would disown him if he failed Potions—that he needed a tutor, the best potions student in class if possible, otherwise he'd bring dishonor on the Potter family name.

Slughorn, who liked Potter primarily because of his charisma and Quidditch skills, had empathized with him completely. ('_Why, Lily is the best student, maybe she'll give you some remedial lessons.'_ Slughorn had said, pointing to Lily. _'I'm sure she's much too busy,'_ Potter had lamented. _'No, of course she isn't, right Lily, dear?'_ Slughorn said.) Now she was committed to lessons every Sunday night, and maybe lessons during the week as well.

As if she didn't have her own work to do!

Lily happened to know for a fact that Potter didn't even need to get an N.E.W.T. in potions. She knew that his parents wouldn't care if he failed. Yet he had the audacity to use these lies to manipulate a professor into making her spend time with him.

She realized with a jolt that Slughorn could have easily referred Potter to Severus as a teacher. Lily wasn't the only Potion's savant in the sixth year. She imagined Potter receiving lessons from Severus instead. No one would have enjoyed that, though it would have served Potter right!

Thinking about Severus made her heart throb though. It was a sign of how much the thought of him upset her that she would rather think about the upcoming lesson with Potter than him.

She waved goodbye to Alice but slipped from the stands before anyone else spotted her. Slughorn had given them the Potions classroom to practice and she wanted to get there first and set up the caldrons and ingredients. She knew potter would want to go back up to the common room and shower before coming to meet her—he would probably even celebrate the victory for a little bit (it all but secured the Quidditch Cup for Gryffindor.)

Lily neared the potions classroom carrying books taken out from the library. Slughorn had given her permission to use some ingredients from his private storeroom. She had thought hard about what kind of potions she wanted to work on with Potter, and decided that probably the potions that would come in handy, if he were really interested in getting his N.E.W.T. in potions, would be the antidotes for various poisons.

She entered the classroom and chose a couple desks in the front, centering two pewter caldrons next to each other in front of the room. Then, feeling a little ambitious, decided she had enough time to concoct her own potion before Potter arrived.

Potion work was meditative, relaxing. The fumes from the brew, pink and purple, shimmered in the dim light of the classroom. Lily stirred carefully, focusing on the instructions in the book. She didn't like to follow the book's instructions. When she was good friends with Severus they would find alternative, better, ways to create potions outside of the assigned book, usually using books from the library for suggestions. It was exhilarating, inventing potions together. Now, alone, she would experiment less wildly; follow the classroom book's instructions more closely.

"Evans," Potter appeared in the doorway, looking clean and refreshed in plain robes. "Are you starting without me?"

"Scourgify," Lily said, wiping the caldron clean with a wave of her wand.

"You didn't have to do that," Potter said, bemused. "I would have waited until you were done."

"It's about the practice, not the product," Lily said, more stiffly than she intended. "Besides, you would probably distract me."

His presence always made her flustered, so she would become rigid, almost wooden, when she talked to him. In order to appear more relaxed, she sat in the chair next to the caldron she'd be working with and attempted a smile. Potter walked to the chair beside her with a shrug. In his characteristic fashion, he sprawled out, spreading his legs apart and leaning his arms over the backrest as if he were sitting on a throne.

"So what's your lesson for today?" Potter grinned, turning his open body towards her with a friendly ease.

"We're going to learn a couple useful antidotes, which are N.E.W.T. level potions. I assume that's what you want to learn, to give you a head start for next year's tests?" Lily handed him the Potions, Grade 7, book open to the chapter on antidotes. "I have the required book here, and I took out a couple supplemental readings from the library if you're interested in borrowing them. These are quite advanced antidotes, but if you really dedicate yourself to them, perhaps you can…"

"Wow, Evans, you're already an expert in advanced potion making?" Potter leaned forward and touched the open pages of the book. "I'm so lucky to have such an accomplished tutor."

He smiled suggestively before sweeping the potions book onto his lap.

"Anyway," Evans said, unnerved at the complimentary interruption "If you learn these advanced antidotes, it will certainly improve your potion skills in general. They are highly nuanced brews, with complicated instructions and rare ingredients. Professor Slughorn has kindly leant us the ingredients."

"Do you want to be a professor at Hogwarts after you graduate?" Potter asked, flipping through the pages but watching her face with an expectant expression. "I think you'd make a great professor."

"I haven't even begun to teach you anything yet!" Lily said, annoyed. "Can you just let me finish without interrupting me?"

"By all means," Potter said easily, not abashed at all. "Continue please Professor Evans."

Lily could not remember what she had been about to say. She breathed deeply, collecting herself. Being serious towards him, she felt that she was respecting him as an equal. However, it was hard to treat him respectfully when he kept treating her like she was superior to him.

The way that he was treating her, also, made her feel like he wanted to hook up with her and nothing more. She wondered what would happen if she did go on that date with him: he'd probably lose interest in her immediately like Sirius had with Ivy when they dated briefly in fifth year.

Not that she'd ever date Potter. The way he hexed students from other houses for no reason was completely out of line with her own value system. His constant showing off annoyed her too. It was as if everyone was required to give him their attention all the time.

"As I was saying, tonight we're going to work on the Wiggenweld Potion; Slughorn even gave us two unicorn horns. He made me promise that I would save the finished potions though, because they're expensive in Hogsmeade."

"What if my potion isn't very good?" Potter asked, hesitantly. "I don't want to waste his unicorn horn."

"I'll take you through the potion instructions, step by step," Lily said, relieved that she could assume a comfortable leadership role.

"Alright," Potter said, doubtfully.

Thirty minutes later, Lily was sweating profusely over Potter's caldron.

"No!" She snapped, batting his hand away from the rim. "You can't add the salamander blood until it turns green!"

"It looks greenish," Potter laughed, nevertheless continuing to stir instead of tipping his vial. "I'm following your instructions. I don't understand why my potion looks different than yours."

"Probably because you're not stirring it correctly," Lily said, exasperated.

"You do it then," Potter said, holding out the stirrer.

"Then you're not learning anything! I'd be doing it for you."

"I'll watch and try again afterwards," He put the stirrer into her hand and clasped it shut.

Warily, Lily began stirring the potion. She was uncomfortable with how near he was standing to her, staring into the potion with his face close to hers. She glanced to him, and found he had his eyes on her, not the potion.

"Are you watching?" She asked, giving him a hard look.

Then, he did something unforgivable. Without responding, he leaned into her lips with his own, winding his hand around the back of her head, holding her still. She dropped the stirrer in the potion and placed her hands on his chest, pushing him back with open palms. He kissed her deeper, with a practiced, firm, movement, weaving his fingers into her hair. Her scalp tingled with the pressure of his fingertips. The kiss was warm and his lips were soft.

Her blankly searching mind and churning stomach made it seem like an eternity before she had control over her own actions. She pushed back harder on his chest. He was so strong that the grip he had on the back of her head seemed unbreakable. She panicked as he began to move her towards the tables and stumbled backwards, forcing her head sideways until she broke the contact between their lips.

"No," she said. "Stop."

He stopped, letting go of her head like it was boiling hot to the touch.

When she stepped back, she saw his face was flushed and his pupils dilated, his expression seemed scared, as if he couldn't believe what he had done.

"I'm sorry," he said.

She pulled her wand from her pants pockets and pointed it, with trembling hands, at his chest.

"How dare you!" she sputtered, regaining her voice. "How could you think… that I would want… you didn't ask!"

"I'm sorry," he paled. "I acted impulsively, without thinking. I'm an idiot."

He hit his own forehead with his palm.

"I ought to hex you, Potter." Lily felt hot tears form. "That was my first kiss you know, I should… people should get to choose who they kiss. Maybe that doesn't mean anything to you, but to some people it means a lot! I bet you've snogged loads of people, it's not something special to you."

She jabbed her wand at him.

"Of course it's special to me, and I haven't snogged loads of people," he looked dismayed. "I really wasn't thinking. I'm really sorry. I won't ever do it again. Please, let's continue making the potion, I'll behave myself from now on. You can even hex me if you'd like, I won't stop you."

Lily lowered her wand, sparks emitted from the tip towards the floor.

"If you think I'm going to continue to teach you after this, you're a nutter!" Lily snarled, putting her wand back into her pocket with great difficulty. "Of all the disrespectful things you could have done, that was the worst."

"But Slughorn's unicorn horns will go to waste," Potter pointed out, looking even more dismayed than before.

"You can explain that to him. I'm going back to the dorms."

* * *

"What did you expect mate, that she would agree to date you if she only got to sample your snogging first?" Sirius said, unsympathetically.

James sat beside him in the common room with his head in his hands.

"I didn't expect anything, I wasn't thinking. She just looked so beautiful stirring the potion and our faces were so close together. I'm such a prat," James moaned. "She'll probably never talk to me again."

"If you want to get with Evans, Prongs, you're going to have to work on your approach," Sirius said, grinning at his best friend askance, the light from the common room fire reflected in his dark eyes. "Maybe you should conjure for her a bouquet of flowers as an apology?"

"Maybe," James said, without hope. "Or…"

He sat up straight in the chair, looking more cheerful.

"Oh no," Sirius said, flicking his hair from his eyes with an exasperated expression. "Here comes another bad idea."

"Or I can get Slughorn to make her continue to give me potions lessons and spend the time apologizing for snogging her until she forgives me!" James said, clenching his fist. "She'll have to forgive me eventually, and by that time she might even decide to date me as well."

"Someone did some screwy spell on your head," Sirius said, laughing.

James ignored him, "Maybe if I tell Slughorn that Lily was breaking her promise he would take my side and make her teach me again! I don't think she'd tell him about me snogging her, do you think?"

"Even if I thought this was a loony idea, you wouldn't listen to me, mate," Sirius replied, lazily twirling his wand between his fingers. "You're too thick-headed about her."

"Of course I am," James said, as if it was obvious. "I'm going to marry Lily."

"The day you marry Lily, I'll eat my wizard's hat," Sirius said.

"Deal," James held out his hand to Sirius.

"Oh boy," Sirius leaned back into the couch, stretching his long, wiry arms to the ceiling. "If we weren't friends, I would recommend you check into the St. Mungos ward for the incurably insane."

"Hah," James said. "You'll find a girl you feel this way about one day, Padfoot. Then you'll understand the madness."

"Maybe," Sirius said, doubtfully. "Even if I do, though, I won't act the way that you're acting. You're going to get yourself expelled for harassment one of these days."

"Nah," James said, dismissively, he picked up his mug of butterbeer and took a swig of it before continuing. "I'll probably get expelled for other things first, like sneaking around after dark and hexing people."

Sirius grinned, then he lifted his mug of butterbeer to James's, "Cheers to that."

* * *

Jerseycaramel: Thanks so much for the encouraging reviews! I look forward to any suggestions for improvements :]


	5. Chapter Four: 1974, by the lake

_1974: Dark Magic_

[Edited, 4/10]

* * *

Under a willow tree near the Black Lake, between spring buds and wispy grass, Severus sat with his back against the tree stump, tapping his wand on the earth and watching a red-haired fourth-year splash around the lake shallows with a pair of bright blue wellington rain boots.

"Why do you wear muggle footwear," Severus shredded a blade of grass viciously, looking around himself as if expecting to see someone spying on them. "Do you want everyone to know that you're different?"

"I'm not ashamed of my muggle upbringing," she responded mildly, pulling strands of copper hair behind a tiny shell-shaped ear.

"It's not about being ashamed," Severus lowered his voice to a hiss. "You could get attacked."

"Hmph," Lily tapped her boots with her wand and they disintegrated into the lake, transfigured into a cluster of water lilies around her bare ankles. "You're very worried lately. I should be safe at school. Dumbledore wouldn't let anything happen."

Severus breathed in and out slowly, clenching his fingers around his robes.

"I wouldn't let anything happen," He said finally.

He spotted a patch of daffodils near his legs and touched them with the tip of his wand, setting them on fire. The weeds blackened and bent in the flames until they became a pile of gray dust. Lily wrinkled her nose.

"See? You wouldn't let anything happen," she said, staring at the pile of dust. "So it should be perfectly safe to wear my wellingtons."

Severus opened his mouth to protest, but she cut him off before he could.

"Unless you don't want me to wear them because you just don't like it when I wear muggle clothing," she raised her eyebrows elegantly, sinking her toes into the mud and twisting them around.

Seeing that he had no response to this, she raised her wand and pointed at the pile of gray dust, causing it to whirl as if it were a miniature cyclone until it transformed into a patch of daffodils again. Then, with a delighted smile, she walked from the edge of the lake and sat next to Severus near the tree.

"I'm so excited for Charms Club next week," she said, placing her hand on his knee and adjusting her position until she was kneeling comfortably beside him with the tree at her back. "Professor Flitwick has offered to teach advanced students how to do a bubble-head charm so we can dive in the lake."

"We could learn how to do the bubble-head charm today if you'd like," Severus suggested, sitting up straighter. "It wouldn't be too difficult to find the spell in the library."

"Maybe," Lily said agreeably. "I really like the way that Flitwick explains things though, he makes charms seem really easy."

Severus looked disappointed.

"Speaking of clubs," Lily continued. "I didn't see you at Potions Club yesterday. Did something come up?"

She glanced at him, assessing his face when he took a long time to respond. He was staring at the ground, shredding pieces of grass, and looking distinctly uncomfortable. Lily took him in, from his bare feet, dirty with mud with weeds sticking up between his hairy toes, to his slouched shoulders and wrinkled wizard's robes that were too small for him by a couple inches in the sleeves. He didn't appear to have gotten enough sleep the night before, evidenced by the purple tint under his eyes and his lips were badly chapped.

"I wasn't feeling well," Severus said, licking his lips and rubbing them together. "I fell asleep in the Slytherin common room after dinner."

"Oh, alright," Lily said, reaching out and putting her palm to his forehead. "You don't seem to have a temperature. Would you like me to brew you a pick-me-up?"

"I'm feeling better today," he said, flushing slightly.

Lily clucked her tongue, "Poor Sev, I'll make you some healing potions tonight."

She put her arm around his shoulder and gave him a squeeze. He stiffened, and a light blush blossomed below his dark eyes.

"What do we have here?"

Lily looked up and immediately her hand flew from Severus's shoulder to her wand. Looming over the both of them, in a small group, were James, Sirius, and Peter. Lily knew if Remus had been there, then the other three probably wouldn't have approached them.

"Evans," Potter acknowledged her with a lopsided grin. "How are you doing?"

"Go away," Severus said, in a low voice.

He was already on his feet with his wand out before Lily could react.

"Careful Snivily," Sirius said, his shining eyes set on Severus's wand. "We wouldn't want you to make us curse you again."

Lily pulled herself up to her full height, a good two inches shorter than James and Severus, and half a foot shorter than Sirius, though the same height, roughly, as Peter.

"Why don't you guys go find someone else to bully," she said with a glance at Severus.

He was already sick, and she didn't want him getting cursed again.

"Why don't you go out with me," James suggested.

He didn't have his wand out, but instead held it lazily at his side. He ignored Severus to address Lily.

"Because you're a prat," Lily said, pulling her wand out as well and pointing it at James. "Sev and I were enjoying the beautiful spring weather and we don't want you to interrupt us. If you don't leave us alone, you'll be sorry."

James smiled warmly, as if she'd told him a joke he'd heard before.

"We'll leave as soon as we're finished with Snivilus," he said to Lily. "You have my word."

Lily scowled. She didn't like the way he'd said "finished with Snivilus." It was said in a much darker tone than the rest of the sentence.

"Been busy lately, Snivily?" Sirius asked, twirling his wand through his fingers.

"Where were you last night?" James raised his own hand and held it out in front of him, pointed at Severus. "Were you skulking around Gryffindor house, cursing first years so that "blood traitor" was written in boils on their faces?"

Lily gasped, "Sev would never do that!"

She gripped her wand tightly and gestured toward James and Sirius, "You both better leave him alone, find someone else to lie about."

"Your greasy little friend has been doing favors for his Slytherin friends. Him and Regulus curse 'blood traitors' and muggle-born wizards all the time," Sirius said calmly. "My brother brags about it to me."

"Maybe your brother is the one who did that then," Lily said stubbornly. "Why don't you go and find him."

She twisted her bare foot into the earth, squashing the daffodils, and making a squelching noise in the mud.

"Evans, this greasy git isn't worth you defending him," James argued as she turned her wand on him. "He'd curse you in a heartbeat."

"He would never," Lily shook her head, sending waves of copper hair behind her shoulders. "Besides, he was sick last night. He couldn't be the person who cursed any first years."

Sirius laughed mirthlessly, "You're so thick-headed," he said.

Severus, who had been frozen, listening to them argue, looked as if he'd awakened from a deep sleep.

"You leave off," he threatened. "Or you'll regret it!"

Peter took his wand out too, but stepped behind James as he brandished it. His childish face was pale, but his eyes were glinting with excitement.

"If you didn't know Lily, you'd curse her without a second thought," James said, also turning red. "You're a slimy, evil git who practices dark magic and lies to her about it so she'll keep hanging out with you."

Severus spit out a spell, but James was too quick, "Protego," he shouted, and the spell bounced harmlessly into the lake.

"No!" Lily shouted, and stepped in front of Severus before Sirius could counter-attack.

In a rush, James pointed at Lily with his wand and said, "Protego" again, and Sirius's spell also bounced harmlessly into the lake.

"Leave him alone!" Lily said, a little late.

Severus tried pushing her out of the way.

"Don't be stupid," he said.

"You just wait until I'll catch you doing illegal magic," James said, warningly, lowering his wand. "Then you'll get chucked out for good."

"You won't catch him," Lily piped up, tucking her hand behind her ear again and puffing out her chest. "Sev isn't involved in the dark arts, and he doesn't care about muggle-born witches or wizards. We hang all the time and he never did anything bad to me."

"I'm sure he wants to do bad things to you," Sirius muttered loudly enough to be heard by everyone. "But not things you do with magic."

Severus flushed darker.

"Don't talk about Lily that way," his wand hand was trembling, pointing at Sirius. "I'm warning you."

"I'm not talking about Lily," Sirius retorted. "I'm talking about you and your sick perversions."

None of them seemed to want to use magic anymore with Lily standing in the middle of it all, so the argument had devolved into an insult match. Surmising this, James breathed out, as if releasing the tension from the conflict.

"You should be ashamed of what you did to that boy," he said to Severus, his voice quivering with emotion. "He went to St. Mungo's and he might not be able to return until next term, if the curse wears off by then. If you have any capability for remorse, you should feel awful about that."

Severus scowled, his narrowed eyes looked like shadowy slits below his black hair, and his large nose was flaring with anger. He stared between James and Sirius in silence, glowering.

"What are you going to do when your gang of death eaters asks you to curse Evans?" James continued. "Are you going to scar her face permanently with boils or use an unforgivable curse on her like you did to that half-blood third year hufflepuff, last month?"

Severus merely glared at James from below a cave of swept sideways dark hair.

"You're sick," Sirius said, putting his wand back into his pocket with a disgusted look at Severus. "Just wait until Lily isn't around. Then we can continue this conversation."

"You're not safe with him, Evans." James said, before he walked away with his friends. "You're better off with me."


End file.
